1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a hand-held tool for opening a box. The present invention relates more specifically to a hand-held box opening tool used to quickly open a perforated tab on a box containing a syrup bag for carbonated beverages.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many shapes and sizes of packaging are available on the market today. Such packaging typically takes the shape of a box made from cardboard or plastic. These boxes are often sealed with glue or staples to prevent loss of the interior contents during transport or storage. However, once access to the contents is desired, such boxes may prove quite difficult to open. To facilitate their opening, the boxes may contain a line of perforations or score lines along an area most easily opened commonly referred to as a tab. Depending on the thickness of the material of the box and the effectiveness of the score lines, opening such boxes may still prove frustrating.
Tools for aiding the opening of such packaging have been devised to assist in their opening. Such tools are typically hand-held and accomplish their objective by cutting and sliding under a wall of the box at one of the box corners.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,371,021, and 4,398,314, issued to Converse et al., describe a box top opener for opening boxes which have their upper end enclosed by overlapping flaps held together with glue. The box top opener includes a handle, a flat plate attached to one end of the handle in a direction transverse to the length of the handle, and two, flat, parallel jaws which are attached to the plate opposite the side of the handle. The first jaw has a flat, rectangular shape and rides on top of the upper surface of the box top being opened. The second jaw which is spaced close to the first jaw is made of a triangular plate having a length between one-half and the full length of the first jaw. The triangular-shaped jaw has edges which are beveled, and it is this triangular second jaw which is inserted beneath the box top in order to open the box.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,835,860, issued to Infeld, describes a hand tool for opening a paperboard carton having a push-in tab at a top corner of the carton. This device has a spoon-shaped body with a handle and a pointed bowl member at one end of the handle. A rigid arm extends from the handle at the point where the bowl is attached to the handle and runs parallel out over the bowl, terminating in a free end about half the length of the bowl from its attachment to the handle. This free end is positioned on top of the box and the bowl is pressed against the push-in tab of the box. Then, the handle is lowered down pushing the bowl against the tab, thereby opening the box at the tab. At the far end of the bowl, there is a small projection which engages the bottom edge of the pushed-in tab on the carton so that it can be pulled out from inside the carton.
These prior art opening tools have their limitations. They are relatively complicated to use and are restricted to use on particular kinds of packaging. For example, the invention described by Converse is designed for use on boxes which have their upper end enclosed by overlapping flaps held together with glue. Likewise, the opener described by Infeld is limited to opening paperboard cartons with a lever-type movement.
As generally described above, the package opening tool of the present invention has practical application in a number of situations involving the opening of a pre-scored tab on the package. The tool has specific application in the soft drink industry for opening the box packaging surrounding pliable plastic bags of soft drink syrup used extensively throughout the industry. The soft drink industry manufactures and transports soft drink syrup separate from the carbonated water which is later combined with the syrup to create the carbonated beverage. Such syrups are typically stored in plastic, soft-sided bags which are easily sealed for sanitary purposes. The syrup bags have a spigot from which the syrup is dispensed. However, due to the difficulty in storing and transporting the bags of syrup, each bag is placed inside a rigid box-shaped container. This combination of syrup bag and box are commonly referred to in the industry as a "bag-in-box" or a "BIB". Typically, the outer, more sturdy package is a rectangular cardboard box. One side of the BIB contains pre-scored lines creating a tab in the side of the box which has a generally triangular shape. The outer box of the BIB must be opened along this tab to access the spigot located in the syrup bag. Although the BIBs have their advantages, they are not easily opened.
A typical soft drink distributor must unload and open many BIBs a day for the purchasers so that the spigot within each may be accessed. Some distributors use their hand to open the tab, while others use a sharp object such as a knife. However, neither method works well. Over time, the distributors that use their hands may cause damage to their hands from repeatedly opening the BIBs. Those distributors that use a sharp object to open the BIB often tear the syrup bag in the process, resulting in damaged product and lost product sales. A simple and efficient means of accessing the syrup bag through the outer box of the BIB without damaging the syrup bag is therefore required.
It is, therefore, a primary object of this invention to provide a simple tool which is easy to use to open a wide variety of packages containing pre-scored lines.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a hand-held package opening tool which is easily manufactured.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a package-opening tool which is easy to use.
Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.